Friday, November 1, 2013

In Mexico and in Mexican expat communities, November 1st and 2nd mark
"Día de Muertos," or Day of the Dead. The two days are a chance for
families to remember their lost ones, combining ancient Aztec, Mayan,
Náhuatl, Purépecha and Totonocao traditions with Spanish Christianity.

In the days prior, many Mexicans put up an altar in their house. Usually
adorned with flowers (cempasúchil, or marigolds), a candle for and
photo of each loved one, sugar or chocolate skulls, fruits, the sugary
"bread of the dead" (pan de muerto), pumpkins, candied squash, religious
symbols and paper decorations, the altar is said to be an offering for
the departed.On the first day of celebrations, families that
have lost children will go to the graves where they are buried, clean
and paint the site and spend the night telling anecdotes and stories.
Usually, they leave toys at the grave.

The second day
commemorates adults who have passed away and the tradition is similar to
that of children, but it is common to take to the grave typical Mexican
drinks such as tequila, mezcal, pulque or atole.

What´s uniquely
Mexican about these days is the attitude. Ancient indigenous views took
a more natural view toward death: the spirit of the departed was
determined more by the way the person died rather than their behavior
during their time on earth. Death was an accepted, not feared, part of
life. These perspectives, with infusions of Christianiaty, are present
today, not only on Día de Muertos but in Mexican culture in general.

Día
de Muertos traditions, which coincide with All Saints' and All Souls'
days and have similar variants in Latin America, are especially
prominent in southern and central Mexico. Each region has its respective
adaptations, and the customs can vary from town to town. Even in the
sprawling Mexico City metropolis, the tradition is strong.

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Halloween is being celebrated today in several countries around the world including in parts of Latin America where the holiday has traditionally not been observed. One of these countries is Colombia and while some people there have taken on the Halloween customs such as pumpkin decorating and trick-or-treating, others are not so pleased.

Earlier this month the dean of the Universidad Minuto de Dios called for a ban on all Halloween celebrations at the school’s campus.

“I ask that this holiday is not celebrated in our institution, which I consider contrary to our Christian principles of love and seeking what is good, said Father Harold Castilla in a statement issued on October 22nd. Halloween, in his view, is a “tradition with roots in the pagan adoration of spirits and the Celtic god of death.”

Though Castilla acknowledged that individuals have a “personal choice” to observe Halloween away from school, he called on all Halloween decorations to be removed from the campus. Instead he urged students and faculty to prepare for the celebration of Christmas, which he described as a holiday “where we can all open our hearts, homes and this intuition to receive the Christ Child.”

Some university students claimed that Castilla was censoring them and limiting their freedoms of religion and expression.

“It’s an outrage falsely based on Church doctrines,” reportedly said one person who commented on the “Memes UniMinuto” Facebook page.

“What did you expect from a religious institution? It’s like saying that partygoers at a nightclub should pray the rosary at midnight,” mentioned another commenter.

Your browser does not support iframes.* U.S.: David “Big Papi” Ortiz was named as the Most Valuable Player in the World Series after he helped power the Boston Red Sox to their third title in the last nine years.

* Puerto Rico: Hector Pesquera announced that he would resign as head of a police force beleaguered by corruption and a high murder rate on the island.

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Despite the efforts of the Texas State Board of Education the impact of Cesar Chavez on American history cannot be understated. Simply put, he was instrumental in promoting the labor rights of farm workers and is viewed as an icon in the Latino civil rights movement.

His life will be the subject of a feature film directed by Mexican actor Diego Luna and starring Michael Peña as Chavez. Entitled “Cesar Chavez: An American Hero,” the movie also stars America Ferrera as Chavez’ wife and Rosario Dawson as immigrant and labor rights activist Dolores Huerta.

“I’ve gone across (the U.S.-Mexico) border many times, my son was born in the United States – he is also a Mexican-American with the two passports. So with this movie I want to bring that community and its neighbors closer together,” said Luna in a recent interview.

The official trailer to the Chavez biopic was released this week, which you can view below the page break:

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

For the 22nd consecutive year, the United Nations (U.N.) passed a resolution against a decades long U.S. trade embargo on Cuba.

A whopping 188 of the 193 member nations of the U.N. General Assembly condemned the embargo while the U.S. and Israel where the only states to reject the resolution.

"Our small island poses no threat to the national security of the superpower," Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said at the General Assembly. "The human damages caused by the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States against Cuba are incalculable,” he mentioned though he also claimed that the “blockade” has caused $1.1 billion in “economic damages” to Cuba.

Speaking in the name of the South American Mercosur bloc, Venezuelan ambassador to the U.N. Samuel Moncada blasted the embargo as “the main obstacle to the economic development of Cubans” and a “violation against the principles of justice and human rights.”

Meanwhile, the U.N. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean alleged that the embargo and the U.S. labeling Cuba as a “state sponsor of terrorism” have negated any “progress in the process of reforming” the island’s economy.

In response to the criticism of the embargo, senior U.S. adviser for Western Hemisphere affairs Ronald Godard claimed “Our sanctions policy toward Cuba is just one of the tools in our overall effort to urge respect for the civil and human rights. He tied to downplay Rodriguez’ comments by noting that $2 billion in remittances were sent to Cuba from the U.S. in 2012 and that the island’s government “silences critics, disrupts peaceful assembly (and), impedes independent journalism.”

* Venezuela: Venezuelan officials announced the planned installation of tens of thousands of surveillance cameras nationwide including in high-crime areas of several major cites.

* Chile: Patricio Ahumada, the leader of a gang recently convicted of the 2012 murder of gay youth Daniel Zamudio, was sentenced to life in prison by a Chilean court.

* Cuba: The relaxation of travel restrictions may explain why there was a reported 35% boost in the number of Cuban tourists who have left the island.

* Brazil: Brazil’s Bio-Manguinhos biomedical research center in conjunction with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will try to produce a combined measles and rubella vaccine for export to developing countries.

Monday, October 28, 2013

* Argentina: Opposition factions made big gains in yesterday’s local elections and may have “snuffed out” any chance of amending the constitution to allow President Cristina Fernandez to run for a third term.

* U.S.: St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Carlos Beltrán was named as the recipient of this year’s Roberto Clemente Award in recognition of his charitable efforts.

* Nicaragua: The Nicaraguan government issued a “red alert” for a dengue epidemic that has killed at least twelve people this year.

* Colombia: The FARC guerillas “quietly” released a former U.S. army private to Red Cross representatives over four months after he was detained in southeastern Colombia.